History: Houston's Memorial Park is located on the grounds of World War I-era Camp Logan. It has been a city park since 1924, and is named for those lost in The Great War. Depending on where you travel in the park, you may find remnants of Camp Logan, such as concrete walls, or bits of old blacktop.

Overview: Memorial Park is a 1,503-acre city park with tennis courts, baseball fields, a golf course, fitness center, swimming pool and at least 10 miles of official biking/hiking trails, some paved, some not. (There are a couple more miles of unofficial trails.) At least the unpaved trails are multi-use.

The paved trail along Memorial Drive is so popular, my first impression was that I was seeing a walkathon or marathon. It makes Camelback's Cholla trailhead look sparsely populated.

The unpaved trails south of Memorial Drive can be difficult to follow, due to heavy vegetation -- thus the nickname "Ho Chi Minh Trail" -- and many of them being unofficial (e.g. the southern leg of the green loop). The heavy vegetation makes it hard to spot bikes, so stay alert. As I did, you will probably make many wrong turns, even if armed with a map, but you can't get lost: If you hit the river: head north.

I could not find any rural hiking options in the area -- Houston is a ginormous metropolis -- so Memorial Park is a solid option near the middle of the city for any visitor's who want something more than the exercise room in their hotel.

When hiking several trails on a single "hike", log it with a generic name that describes the hike. Then link the trails traveled, check out the example.

WARNING! Hiking and outdoor related sports can be dangerous. Be responsible and prepare for the trip. Study the area you are entering and plan accordingly. Dress for the current and unexpected weather changes. Take plenty of water. Never go alone. Make an itinerary with your plan(s), route(s), destination(s) and expected return time. Give your itinerary to trusted family and/or friends.

Permit $$

None

Directions

Map Drive

or

Road

Paved - Car Okay

To hikeHouston's Memorial Park is located just inside I-610, the inner loop freeway, about four miles west of downtown. How you get there is up to you, but if you are unfamiliar with Houston traffic is brutal on the freeways, especially during weekday rush hour, despite there being lots of them. Best bet is probably to take a major city street to Memorial Drive, then travel east/west on that to the parking area, which is by the baseball fields.